The City of Aiken's newly adopted 1 percent hospitality tax takes effect today, and the Aiken Standard plans to report once a month what funds the City receives.
City Council adopted the tax in May in a 4-to-2 vote. The tax is set at 1 percent and is a tax on the gross proceeds from the sale of prepared meals, food and beverages in the city. That includes meals and beverages prepared in grocery stores, delis, bakeries, gas stations, hotels and nursing homes.
City officials estimate the tax will bring at least $1.2 million per year into the City, and the use of the collected funds will be divided four ways - $600,000 for business-related investments, $160,000 for business license relief, $110,000 for business vitality and $330,000 for enterprise capital reserves.
Businesses inside the city limits that serve prepared meals and beverages are expected to turn in their month's worth of collected funds to the City's Finance Department by the 20th of each month. Those receipts also will be available monthly in City Council's agenda.
For more information about the hospitality tax, call 803-642-7642, email licenses@cityofaikensc.gov, or view the City's video at www.youtube.com/user/CityofAikenSC.
Maayan Schechter is the local government reporter with Aiken Standard. An Atlanta native, she has a mass communications-journalism degree with the University of North Carolina Asheville.